IPL 2018 : 5 Players who need to prove their worth to their Franchise

Over the past 10 years, IPL has been home to some of the best batting, bowling, as well as fielding performances by the greatest players of this generation. Certain players, like Suresh Raina, Virat Kohli, Rohit Sharma, Lasith Malinga performed so well throughout the decade that, not only did they manage to top the statistics charts every year and prove their worth to their franchise, their teams were always ready to spend hefty amounts of money just to retain their services for the next seasons as well.

On the other hand, there has been a certain group of players, who were bought at a very high auction price due to the hype and buzz around them but failed miserably when their team needed them the most. Yuvraj Singh, for example, was bought by Delhi and Bangalore for 14 crores and 16 crores respectively but was released after just one season due to his inability to prove his worth.

This time out as well, there are a certain number of players whose franchises have spent a lot of money on them and who need to perform consistently well to prove their worth. Here are the five players who must perform consistently well to secure their place in the team for the next season as well.

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#5 Axar Patel (Kings XI Punjab)

The only player retained by Kings XI Punjab

A lot of eyebrows were raised when Kings XI Punjab decided to retain only Axar Patel from their 2017 squad. After all, KXIP had many better options in Hashim Amla, their highest run scorer in 2017, David Miller and Skipper Glenn Maxwell.

Even though Patel performed very well in the previous season, few people expected KXIP to retain him, considering that it would have cost them a whopping 12.5 crores from their wallets.

With a squad that is probably their strongest since 2014, featuring the likes of KL Rahul, Chris Gayle, Yuvraj Singh and R. Ashwin, Kings XI Punjab have a very strong chance of making it to the playoffs this season.

Despite that, a lot of responsibilities will be there on the shoulders of Patel. He was trusted by the franchise, who spent a full 5.5 crores more than his salary to retain him. He will have to prove his worth for his team by performing at his best and taking his team to their first playoff in 4 years.

#4 Kedar Jadhav (Chennai Super Kings)

Will he be able to provide those finishing touches?

Kedar Jadhav's career took a turn for the good when he was bought by the Royal Challengers Bangalore in 2016. His two-year tenure was with the Bengaluru based franchise was so impressive that it even helped him cement his place in both T20I and ODI squad.

After a surprising turn of events saw him released by RCB before the 2018 IPL auction, Chennai Super Kings acquired his services for a mammoth sum of 7.6 crores with expectations that he would play the same role for them as well.

However, if his recent performances are any indication, Jadhav might find it really hard to prove his value for the money he is being paid. After an injury kept him out for a couple of months, his subsequent return to the squad was also short-lived as constant poor performances cost him his place in the national team.

With CSK having a plethora of world class players in the lineup, Jadhav will have to play several match-winning knocks for CSK in order to prove his selection worth.

#3 Manish Pandey (Sunrisers Hyderabad)

The perennial backup batsman for India.

The first Indian to score a century in the IPL, Manish Pandey has really grown as a player since his early days with RCB. Always touted as the next big thing in Indian cricket, Pandey matured as a batsman and a player overall during his 4 year stint with KKR.

Pandey was so good for KKR that not only did he manage to earn a well deseved spot in the Indian team, but he was also touted as the next captain of KKR before SRH snatched him with a gargantuan bid of 11 crores.

However, even for a player of the calibre of Manish Pandey, it is a very tough task to live up to the buzz of being one of the most expensive players in IPL. Despite being on the National team's radar for almost 4 years now, Pandey has been a backup batsman for the majority of that period.

With an added pressure of living up to the 11 crore tag, Pandey will have a hard time proving his worth to both SRH and the Indian team management and will have to play his best game if he wants to prove his naysayers wrong.

#2 Hardik Pandya (Mumbai Indians)

Rock Star... or Flop Star?

Without any doubt, the biggest success story in the 10-year history of IPL is that of Hardik Pandya. He has evolved into India's premier all-rounder across all the formats just 3 years after making his debut in IPL in 2015.

His hard-hitting and aggressive batting style, along with his exceptional fielding skills and medium-fast bowling, often proved vital and game-changing for the Mumbai Indians during their victorious campaigns in 2015 and 2017.

However, his form in the past 6 months, as well as his cocky and troublesome attitude, could be an issue for the Mumbai Indians. He failed to live up to the buzz around him during the South African tour and was often criticized for his batting style.

Despite the fact that Mumbai Indians retained his service for a mammoth sum of 11 crores, Pandya will have to perform big time in order to solidify his spot as the first choice all-rounder in the Mumbai Indians' team. Pandya will have to prove his worth as the rockstar of the team and help MI retain their title in 2018.

#1 Jaydev Unadkat (Rajasthan Royals)

Will he be able to prove his worth this time out?

The biggest success story of the last edition of IPL is that of Jaydev Unadkat. He was a revelation for the now-defunct Rising Pune Supergiants in 2017. His 24 wickets in just 12 matches, which was the second highest in the tournament, was instrumental in the RPS eventful final season that ended with a defeat in the finals.

The Pune based franchise might have ceased to exist, but his performance last year made Unadkat a red-hot property as he was grabbed by Rajasthan Royals for a colossal 11.5 crores, the highest among all Indian players.

Unadkat, however, has endured a rather lean patch in recent times. His performance in the recently concluded series against South Africa was rather disappointing as Unadkat was highly criticized for leaking runs during the two matches that he played.

Rajasthan Royals, who are famous for not spending too much on popular players, went it all out on Unadkat in the auction, hoping that he will act as the difference between their team's wins and losses. Unadkat will certainly have an uphill task to prove his critics wrong and perform in a similar way as he did last year to prove his worth to his owners.